TWENTY ONE M-I-L-L-I-O-N

◼ Three raids in the area of Garberville and Benbow netted an estimated $21 million in marijuana, including nearly 24,000 plants and 600 pounds of processed pot. - Catherine Wong/The Times-Standard

Twenty One Million.

The article makes note of environmental law violations. And, if they had kids, you might find them on the 'free lunch' rolls, right, because the parents show no income. If they're in town, with an indoor grow, their PG&E bill is likely more than most people make every month, and they might be on some special low-income assistance program. Wherever they live, they might be getting Food Stamps, WEC, and whatever other programs they're 'eligible' for.

And even if they're not, they're guilty of a whole lot more than just illegal growing. There's income tax evasion, likely labor law violations, and any number of other laws and statutes they are either violating or not complying with.

Funny how people who support this behavior will also, with a straight face, pontificate with "It's the law of the land" as a new favorite phrase. When they so clearly don't care on whit about the 'law of the land.'

"Ken Miller," Sylvia DeRooy and the plagiarist. And hypocrisy.

In the ongoing saga of the graduation speech and the school board member, a familiar player raises his head. ◼ NHUHSD PLAN FOR RESPONDING TO PLAGIARIZED SPEECH: DO NOTHING - McKinleyville Press
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In the comments, Ken Miller* says:
August 29, 2013 at 8:03 pm
A concern I have not seen expressed is what other transgressions Don is involved in? He has many big projects, and not just locally, with many opportunities to skim, skate, or otherwise scam a variety of enviro and economic laws. He is simply not trustworthy. Just as catching a speeder or shoplifter is assumed to be catching a chronic offender, we can assume that a parent willing to involve his daughter in a baldface lie in front of her peers, and then attack we who are incensed by his sociopathy, reveals someone capable of, well, anything.
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Really? Is this the real Ken Miller? the Ken Miller who brought us Paul Gallegos (the plagiarist)? Ken Miller who stood on his "Fraud is not a victimless crime" soapbox?

The same Ken Miller behind so many political machinations in this county? Suddenly going for the jugular?

Yet - the same Ken Miller who supports Paul Gallegos DESPITE his plagiarizing THE OX-BOW INCIDENT by ROBERT LOUIS FELIX in his PUBLISHED OP-ED "MY-WORD" IN THE TIMES STANDARD?

Yes, the same Ken Miller, (and Sylvia DeRooy, BIG vociferous Gallegos supporter) front and center, at the School Board meeting last night. Opining about the evils of plagiarism.

So, let's hear Ken (and Sylvia) stipulate that Paul Gallegos "is simply not trustworthy. Just as catching a speeder or shoplifter is assumed to be catching a chronic offender, we can assume that a DA willing to mislead the public in a baldface lie in front of his peers,... reveals someone capable of, well, anything."
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* We're assuming this really is Ken Miller, out from the shadows, but maybe it's Salzman, using Ken Miller's name. Who knows.
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And for you newbies, who don't know the history:

RELATED STORIES:
THE OX-BOW INCIDENT by ROBERT LOUIS FELIX
a copy of THE OX-BOW INCIDENT in case the link goes down
TS - Paul Gallegos' My Word
ER - WHOSE WORD WAS 'MY WORD'? - Eureka Reporter http://www.eurekareporter.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?ArticleID=14767
ER - A second Gallegos column raises questions about attribution - Eureka Reporter http://www.eurekareporter.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?ArticleID=14776

Shorter Gallegos: "I am ill prepared and inept...so I am glad a competent lawyer and competent office is taking over my cases."

Another glowing piece from the Times-Standard for their favorite golden boy Paul Gallegos - ◼ Suspect pleads not guilty to SoHum murder in federal court; defendants make initial appearances in 2008 case

The DA's office filed charges in 2008, over a gruesome murder again involving Pot. Most murders in the county are actually linked to that. The ugly little secret that the pro-pot crowd never likes to talk about. The case as is typical with Gallegos dithering for years and years.

Gallegos is now all but giddy that the US Attorney's Office in San Francisco is taking over the case.

"Humboldt County District Attorney Paul Gallegos said he's very grateful that, in this time of scarce resources, the federal government has agreed to take on prosecuting Carroll...It seemed a case that was perfect for the U.S. Attorney's office to send a message to the region that you don't do this or the feds will get involved,” he said. “It's not a local, homegrown murder, so to speak, it's a byproduct of people coming here to do their business.”

"In addition to sending a strong message to deter the type of violence alleged in Carroll and Lee's case, Gallegos said the federal prosecution also takes a murder case off his office's plate, freeing up man-hours and resources for other local prosecutions."

This is the second Murder case that the Feds have literally taken away recently from Gallegos. ◼ (Remember: Kneeland marijuana murder case goes federal; Wilde indicted by federal grand jury, faces potential death penalty) Despite his pontificating, he shows his incredible ignorance of the law. In order to be charged with a Federal crime, you actually need to have violated Federal law. The fact that the Defendants were from out of the area does not make it a Federal crime. Most laws that are on the books are State laws. Murder for example is a state law. If you commit a murder on Federal property that might trigger a Federal prosecution. (This one wasn't.)

However, is that what is really going on here. More interesting was a Murder case that Gallegos recently tried himself. ◼ (Remember: Hung jury in Curry case; mistrial declared as jurors can't agree on murder count) At the conclusion of the People v. Limmie Curry, one juror called Gallegos inept and ill-prepared. That was what made the papers. Gallegos was again chicken and not even present when the Jury decided they could not reach a verdict. He sent one of his over-burdened attorneys to appear, and reports indicate that several other jurors said much harsher things about Gallegos' performance to that attorney than what actually made it in the paper.

It's almost time for him to face the voters again - And again Humboldt will have a choice. They can re-elect a person who is terrible in Court, even more terrible at running the office, who continues to collect 6-figure paycheck, and now his plan is to dump all of his difficult cases on another lawyer. Pathetic. Be warned. Humboldt.

...But... you were warned. You have been warned. By law enforcement. By the Grand Jury. By people who have left the office. By people who have run for office.

I hear from people who serve on juries. This time the comment made the paper. He's inept, incompetent; sometimes, they find the defendant guilty in spite of Gallegos and not because of his brilliant and skillful prosecution. I hear from families of victims. He tells the families he is going to "personally" try this case, and their reaction is "PLEASE DON'T!" It made the paper this time, amazingly enough. The story has not changed in all these years.

Except, now, your office has half the staff it had when he took office. Half. And NONE of them are experienced trial attorneys. Not any more.

He's not the one who is lucky that the Feds are taking the cases out of his incompetent hands. YOU ARE.
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Yes, this blog has been quiet for some time. Yes, I am tempted to give it up. As I have been many times. So - why not give up? One simple reason. All those people who come to me, and tell me what's going on. In despair most of the time. And desirous of anonymity pretty much all the time. But it's ongoing, it's almost daily. The pattern is the same.

And recently, it's stepped up.

So - Thad, where's the story about the 'you get to be assistant DA for a day' clusterfuck that's going on in that office?
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